What Are You Afraid Of? Delegating Can Set You Free!

by Richard Avdoian

Business owners and leaders in general either dread or resist delegating tasks and responsibilities to others. The most common excuses are “I want things done my way” and “It takes too long to explain or teach what I want done.” Yet when the issue is probed further, at its core are their reluctance and fear to relinquish control.

The ability to delegate sets today’s effective business owners and leaders apart from the pack. They realize not only that it is necessary to cross-train employees but also that the need to delegate tasks and responsibilities is essential in light of today’s downsized organizations.

Set yourself free by doing the following:

Select the right person for the right task or responsibility. Take the time to assess an individual’s ability and ambition rather than choosing a person at random or abruptly when in crisis. If this is done well, the individual will feel respected and appreciated and will likely quickly rally and embrace the challenge. If no one in your workforce is ideal for the task, select someone with potential and offer training and mentoring support.

Be willing to relinquish authority but expect accountability. The most common mistake is to delegate a task or responsibility but limit or restrict the person’s authority to make decisions or the freedom to handle tasks differently. If you select the right person or train someone well, you need to be trusting and allow the person to take charge and do his or her job. To ease your anxiety, implement progress review meetings to monitor the person’s ability and quality of the assigned duties.

Take time to adequately explain the specifics of the tasks and your expectations. This can be either verbally or in writing; in some cases it may be necessary to do both. To minimize the learning curve, it is best to address initial questions and requested needs promptly and thoroughly before handing over the task.

Jointly, agree on the time frame for the completed project or, if it is an ongoing responsibility, the desired frequency and dates for progress reports.
Allow for the individual to take initiative to suggest and implement changes to enhance performance, meet deadlines and be accountable for the quality of work performed. Embrace and compliment the new ways tasks are being completed; avoid pointing fingers and being harsh when alternative ways fail; and offer opportunities to process, learn and make corrections to move forward.

Be accessible to review performance and coach to further enhance the individual’s abilities. Recognize that when teaching or assigning a new task, it is necessary to be patient and acknowledge there is a learning curve. Coaching can also provide additional insight into a person’s ability, which may lead to determining you can delegate additional tasks and responsibilities.
Once you have tested the water and recognize the benefit of freeing yourself from tasks and responsibilities, you can focus more on growing your business. In time you may identify other tasks and responsibilities that can be done by members of your workforce once they are trained.

In the end, everyone actually benefits; you set yourself free to do what you do best—build the business—while offering employees new opportunities and in turn creating a workforce that is more motivated, enhanced and engaged.

Richard Avdoian is president/CEO of the Midwest Business Institute Inc., a business consulting and training firm. For information about training and seminars, contact Richard at 618-972-8588 or Richard@RichardAvdoian.com.